


Nelson

by Fedora Of Adorableness (TheTimelessChild0)



Category: White Collar
Genre: Britishness, Fluff and Humor, Parental Peter Burke, Post-Series, Sleepy Neal, neal is a cutie pie, silliness, teddy bear
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-25 14:33:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30090564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheTimelessChild0/pseuds/Fedora%20Of%20Adorableness
Kudos: 12





	Nelson

It wasn’t even halfway through the 8-hour flight, that the young con man started snoring. To the extent you could use that word, about the little noises his cold-infected nose was making as he breathed in and out. The light in the cabin was already dimmed per the passage of time, bringing them closer to the US and the related daytime.

After 2 glasses of wine, 3 trips to the bathroom and a magazine about greek antiquities that London Heathrow provided for some reason, Neal was finally out like a light.

Or...not quite. Peter was about to tuck into the economy plus leather himself, when he heard the telltale sound of limbs smacking about. For a second, he worried that his friend would hurt his elbows on the armrest. But he could not wake him; he’d never fall back asleep that way. It was well known that this was not how the 30-something’s internal clock worked. It was a one and done type of deal.

He instead tried restraining Neal- telling his limbs to stay put for at least a little while longer, until he could descend further down into deeper REM sleep. No such luck. However, when he pressed Caffrey’s hand down, it flipped around and latched on to Burke’s own. Neal relaxed at once. A small smile snuck onto his face at this.

Whenever he tried to free himself, the insomniac searched for the source of comfort and retrieved it successfully. It could not sustain, unfortunately.

While Peter considered lifting the armrest and letting the guy lean up against him, or even simply move the hand to grab at the seat itself...his eyes fell to the floor. Neal’s bag had a bump in it; one he had not noticed when they boarded. Curious, the agent unzipped the bag and felt around for the source of the protrusion. It was round and soft and...remarkably similar to the contours of a teddy bear. He flipped the bag open further. It was indeed a stuffed animal. Now it made sense why he had not spotted it before. Because Neal had likely gone to great lengths to prevent him from doing just that.

He did not give it much additional thought, merely placing the object strategically inside Neal’s elbow. Moving the man’s right hand once more, he revealed the existence of his plushie pal within his surroundings. Caffrey seized the bear gratefully, tucking it atop his shoulder, turning and grinning, reassured as to his safety in the unfamiliar sleeping environment.

Burke’s smile got wider immediately. It was a genuinely endearing sight. All he needed was his fuzzy friend. The Suit could not help himself, taking a photo silently with his smartphone and sending it to El via WhatsApp through the plane’s free WiFi.

“Nighty night, Neal,” he hummed, returning to his newspaper crossword.

* * *

Neal woke up before his fellow agent. The elder was snoring like a pig, which he supposed proved Haversham right as to his nickname of the Fed. His finger rubbed at a pair of ears. Small, cottony ears. He looked down. It dawned on him. For the sake of his own dignity, he had hidden the creature away in his bag, foolishly assuming he could sleep without it while in the air. Apparently not. Clearly, it had not jumped out on its own. Peter had been kind enough to transport it for him. He knew. The bright blush on his cheeks, illuminated by the overhead bulbs, quickly dissipated in favour of immense appreciation for the gesture. He’d slept like a rock. All because Burke had the wisdom to bring him back his dear bear. 

Caffrey straightened the little stowaway, so it looked more casual. Despite the fact, it was obviously anything but normal for an adult to still require such a thing to rest.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

“Hey,”

“Hey,” Neal greeted his companion, who were stretching his surprisingly long arms tiredly, shaking his head to wake up.

“Listen, about the bear...”

“Why’d you hide it from me?” Peter asked.

“Because it’s embarrassing,” he stated matter-of-factly.

“I would never make fun of you for having a bear,” Burke shrugged, still confused.

“Really?” Neal was not convinced.

“Sure. There’s nothing wrong with a grown man having a teddy bear,”

“Mozzie doesn’t count,” Caffrey countered.

“Neal, I learned not to compare you to others when I heard you calculate 64 years of interest in a single second,” Peter pointed out. “It really doesn’t matter how old you are. Whatever helps you sleep at night,” he rubbed Neal’s temple fondly, tucking some hair away from his eyes. The con man followed his lead, moving some more, adjusting his curly dark locks properly.

“So, what’s his name?” Burke queried.

“Nelson,” Neal held up the bear, smiling shyly.

“Good name for a bear. How long have you had him?”

“Since I was 3,” he retold. “Right before...I moved to St Louis. He helped me through a lot of those early nights,” Caffrey confessed.

“Not that they ever improved,” Peter commented with sympathy.

“Depends on your standard of sleep, I guess,” Neal leaned over to the other man’s seat, staring straight at him pitifully. He was about to pack the item again, when his friend stopped it.

“I’m sure Nelson could use another nap,” he advised. The reformed former criminal complied. This time, Peter patted him on the head, lulling him back to sleep.

* * *

“What?” Neal sat up abruptly. He had woken up a second time. Strange. Muy sus. “What the hell just happened?”

“Ooh, watch the language around the poor innocent bear,” Peter jokingly warned, pretending to cover their ears. “We’re almost there,” The Suit raised the window a bit.

Caffrey finally put the bear where he belonged, at this time of day.

“So, I guess that ends the mystery of your tie obsession,” Burke noted, with a smirk.

“Yeah...except it’s the wrong kind he’s wearing,” Neal corrected.

“How’d you come up with the name Nelson?” he asked.

“I didn’t. Ellen told me he was named after Admiral Nelson, though I spotted the embroidery on the inside of the back of the bowtie. Oh well, there’s no way to verify that the manufacturers didn’t name him after the Admiral, might as well be, right?”

Peter did not argue against this.

“Apparently, he’s supposed to guard me against the waves underneath my bed. What I would later identify as hypnagogia. The feeling of weightlessness right before you fall asleep. Always interpreted as being on a boat in rough seas,” Caffrey elaborated.

“You named yourself after the USS Maine, the infamous shipwreck after Kramer went after you,” the agent remembered.

Neal nodded.

“Luckily, I could replace the bear with a beautiful woman,” he smirked.

“And now you’re back to the bear. You know, you really are adorable with him rested against your cheek,”

“Okay, I don’t know whether to be flattered or offended at the invasion of privacy,” Neal snarked.

“Sorry, you just really know how to warm an old FBI agent’s heart,” Peter complimented genuinely.

“Please. Hughes is much older,” the technological virtuoso protested.

“Count yourself lucky he won’t be there when we land, or I’d tell him you said that,” Burke teased.

“You wouldn’t,”

“Why not? I’m Burke the Jerk,”

“Not funny,” he ended the conversation.

♥♡♥♡♥♡♥♡♥♡♥♡♥♡♥♡♥♡♥♡♥♡♥

He hugged Elizabeth hello at the gate, smiling from ear to ear. It was good to finally be home.

“Where’s Nelson?” she asked, rather out of the blue.

“Excuse me?” the fedora-clad gentleman hesitated, caught off guard by the mention.

“Your little nighttime pal,” El elaborated.

“I have  _ no  _ idea what you’re talking about,” he rebuffed.

“Well, he’s  _ yellow _ , cuddly, solid but squishy, artificially ursine...” Peter hinted.

“You told her about him?” Neal accused, irritated.

“No,” Burke denied, truthfully. He opened his phone in front of the man. “I showed her,”

On the screen was the photo of the rascal, curled up as best he could in his constricting plane seat, clutching the comforting tool for all it was worth.

The subject looked down with a blush.

“Sleeping like a baby,” Elizabeth cooed, motherly. This activated a glare.

“Sorry, maybe not the right word to use,”

Caffrey scoffed. “You think?!” he responded in indignation.

“You gotta admit, that’s pretty darn cute,” Peter argued.

“Funny, considering my oh so innocent-looking eyes are  _ closed _ ,” Neal remarked cheerfully.

“Well, come on then, I wanna meet him,” Mrs Burke pressed again. He sighed.

  
“And you bet he’s been wanting to meet you,” he opened his backpack and pulled out the bear, holding him up in front of his face.

“ _ Nice to meet you, M’am. Admiral Nelson at your service, _ ” Neal performed his personal idea of the bear’s ‘voice’, complete with an exaggerated British accent.

While one arm was raised in a salute, the other stuck out to allow Elizabeth to shake it.

“Hi, Admiral,” she chuckled, enjoying the roleplay. Neal interrupted, turning the bear around to lecture him for lying to one of the Burkes.

“For the last time, you are not really an Admiral. That’s just who you were named after.” he chastised.

“ _ Pish posh, I might as well be!  _ ” the bear protested.

“Bad bear,” Caffrey smacked it upside the head, stroking it in a gesture of forgiveness.

“Sorry, not a Build-A-Bear. Never got a chance to kiss his heart to ensure the existence of manners,”

Neal was about to repack Nelson, but thought better of it. If neither of his closest friends minded, strangers’ opinions were irrelevant. Instead, he closed the bag and put it on, keeping the bear by his side, basking in the nostalgia.

“Ready to roll?” Burke invited. They were.

At any other time, it would’ve been awkward to...but he couldn’t help himself. When the three humans walked out the sliding doors at JFK, so did the bear, its little yellow legs sturdy in the grasp of two bony counterfeiting hands.


End file.
